As the shower spray fell against her skin, Nick thrust forward, filling her, moving in a rhythm that quickly took her to the brink, then higher, building, higher, past the point she could contain it anymore, until she was bursting, flying free, and even before she could land, she felt him follow her, shouting her name. And in that moment, she felt more connected to him than she had to any other person, and she could believe that nothing would ever tear them apart.
Once she regained her breath, she lowered one leg to find the shower floor again—even slumped against her, he’d still been holding her weight. He released her, placed a tender kiss on her lips, then ducked his head under the water. This time he soaped up his hands and washed her, then when they were done, he dried her off and wrapped her in a thick towel.
“Thank you,” he said, his gaze holding hers. She didn’t pretend to misunderstand. He wasn’t thanking her for what she’d done with her body—it was more than that. He was thanking her for looking after him. For caring. For accepting him.
“We’re in this together,” she said. “We’re a team.”
He swallowed hard and nodded before gathering her against him and holding tight.
Eleven
Harper arrived at Natalie Valentine’s bridal store at the Courtyard Shops five minutes late for their lunch date with Sophie Prescott.
Natalie met her at the door, her shoulder-length red hair swept up in a messy ponytail, and handed her a glass of champagne.
“Sorry I’m a little late,” Harper said as she slipped inside.
“Don’t worry.” Natalie smiled. “I’m running even more behind than that. The champagne is to make up for it. It’s nonalcoholic for you and Sophie.”
Harper tasted the cool drink. “Random glasses of champagne make up for just about anything.”
“Come on, Sophie’s already over here. I’m doing a fitting for Chelsea Hunt’s bridesmaid’s dress, and she said she doesn’t mind if you two are here while I finish up.”
Natalie showed her over to a set of sofas where Sophie—her own glass of champagne in hand—was already sitting with a gorgeous woman with glossy honey-brown hair around her shoulders. Harper had never spoken to Chelsea before, but she’d heard nice things from other people, so she was pleased to have the chance to meet her.
“Harper, this is Chelsea. She’s Brandee Lawless’s maid of honor, and I just need to make a couple of quick alterations to her dress before we can go.” She turned to the other woman. “Chelsea, this is Harper Lake. She’s an attorney over at Tate Armor.”
“Nice to meet you, Harper,” Chelsea said, holding out her hand. “Tate Armor. Isn’t that Malcolm Tate’s company? That man is seriously gorgeous.”
Caught off guard, Harper felt heat creep up her neck to her cheeks as she shook the other woman’s hand. Though it wasn’t Malcolm she was thinking about.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Chelsea said, her gaze roaming over Harper’s face. “Did I put my foot in my mouth? Is there something between you and Malcolm?”
“Not Malcolm,” Sophie said. “His identical twin brother, Nick. Who one assumes must be just as seriously gorgeous.”
Just as seriously gorgeous. Harper almost laughed. How did she explain that the two men were identical, yet looked nothing alike? One was easy on the eyes. The other made her burn with want and fire and need and love...
She stilled. As soon as the word formed in her mind, she knew it was true. Hard to believe she’d fallen in love so quickly, but there was no other way to describe the intensity of her feelings for him. The way her heart skipped a beat whenever she saw Nick or heard his voice. Or even thought about him.
The other women were still looking at her, waiting for her to confirm that Nick was as gorgeous as Malcolm. She gave a quick nod and slipped into a seat on the sofa.
Natalie took a step back. “Can you just excuse me a minute? I need to check a couple of things on the dress.”
Sophie raised an eyebrow. “We don’t get to see it?”
“Not until the wedding, along with everyone else,” Natalie said with a smile, then disappeared into another room.
“So, the last time we were together, there was lots of j
uicy gossip,” Sophie said good-naturedly. “I’m hoping for at least as much today.”
Chelsea glanced up. “Juicy gossip? You can’t say something like that then not explain.”
“Well,” Sophie said, grinning, “the juiciest of all was that Harper here got married since we’d last seen her less than a couple of weeks before.”
Chelsea’s eyes widened. “To Nick Tate?”
“Yes,” Sophie confided. “And they’re expecting twins.”